DiCarlo v. Suffolk Construction Co., Inc., et al. (Lawyers Weekly No. 10-019-16)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA, 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us SJC-11854 SJC-11853 ROBERT M. DiCARLO vs. SUFFOLK CONSTRUCTION CO., INC., & others;[1] PROFESSIONAL ELECTRICAL CONTRACTORS OF CONNECTICUT, INC., third-party defendant. BERNARD J. MARTIN & another[2] vs. ANGELINI PLASTERING, INC., & others.[3] Suffolk. Middlesex. October 8, 2015. – February 12, 2016. Present: Gants, C.J., Spina, Cordy, Botsford, Duffly, & Lenk, JJ. Workers’ Compensation Act, Action against third person, Settlement agreement, Insurer. Lien. Statute, Construction. Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on March 29, 2007. A petition for settlement was heard by Frances A. McIntyre, J. A proceeding for interlocutory review was heard in the Appeals Court by Judd J. Carhart, J. After review by the Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court granted leave to obtain further appellate review. Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on September 15, 2011. A petition for settlement was heard by Dennis J. Curran, J. After review by the Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court granted leave to obtain further appellate review. Wystan M. Ackerman for Twin City Fire Insurance Company & another. Charlotte E. Glinka for Bernard Martin & another. Thomas R. Murphy for Robert M. DiCarlo. Paul M. Kessimian & David J. Pellegrino, for American Insurance Association, amicus curiae, submitted a brief. Annette Gonthier Kiely, Michael C. Najjar, & J. Michael Conley, for Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys, amicus curiae, submitted a brief. LENK, J. Under Massachusetts law, employees who receive workers’ compensation benefits may not sue their employers for claims arising from work-related injuries. See G. L. c. 152, § 24.[4] Employees may, however, file claims against third parties for damagesarising from those injuries. See G. L. c. 152, §§ 15, 24. When an employee recovers damages from a third party, the workers’ compensation insurer is statutorily entitled to a lien on the recovery in the amount that the insurer paid to the employee in benefits. See G. L. c. 152, § 15. In these two cases, we are asked to ascertain the extent of this lien and, in particular, to clarify whether the lien attaches to damages paid by a third party for an employee’s pain and suffering. The cases involve two employees, Robert M. DiCarlo and Bernard J. Martin, who were injured in the course of their employment, collected workers’ compensation benefits, and then reached settlement agreements with third parties including damages for, […]